Why stowaways were smiling

The three grinning stowaways who arrived at Folkestone early yesterday were just the latest in a long, long line of asylum seekers reaching Britain without let or hindrance.

The two Afghans and an Iraqi had hidden themselves in a cargo of Ford cars at the end of a 3,000-mile journey across Europe.

They had been briefed on what to expect on their arrival in Britain - hence the delighted expressions.

As usual, they were handed over to British Transport police to be taken to a Dover immigration centre.

They will now receive allowances of at least £30 a week and can apply for the right to work after six months, although they will lose their benefits if successful.

Free health care and education will also be on offer as their applications to stay in Britain are processed. Even if asylum is refused they can still appeal - knowing the procedure currently

takes an average of three to four years.

Recent figures show that of the 100,000 asylum seekers who arrived in Britain in 1999, fewer than 8,000 were sent home.

As a last resort if they do not wish to return home, they can join the thousands who have disappeared into the black economy.

This week, the Mail reported how French police were withdrawn from the controversial freight depot at Frethun, near Calais.

Downing Street later won 'assurances' from the French that the special squadron of police had been ordered back on duty.

But yesterday the troubled rail freight company, EWS, complained that the French security measures were still 'totally ineffective' as fewer than a quarter of its trains were getting through.

An EWS spokesman claimed that only 15 police had been guarding a fence three miles long which is constantly breached by the refugees.

As more than 300 refugees swarmed in and around the Frethun depot in the early hours of yesterday, only four EWS trains arrived in Britain.

'We are losing half a million pounds a week and have invested £750 million in this business,' added the EWS spokesman. 'We can't carry on for ever. No private sector company can bear these losses for ever.

'We don't want to walk away from this major investment. It has huge growth potential but it isn't going to happen unless the French security is sorted out.'

A total of 11 men made their way into the EWS freight yard at Dollands Moor early yesterday, joining 98 who had arrived at the depot since Friday.

While four were held at the EWS depot another seven were detained after jumping from a moving train as it emerged from the tunnel.

They were all picked up by Kent Police on the London-bound M20 shortly afterwards.

One illegal immigrant had been found crouching among barrels of beer on a train that had been swept and supposedly 'cleared' by security guards in Calais.

Last night Kent County Council chief Sandy-Bruce Lockhart demanded that the French call out their army to guard the entrance to the tunnel.

In a speech to the French Chamber of Commerce in London, he said : 'If the French police are not capable of providing the necessary security at Frethun and the French terminals then they should call out the army.

'There is a major issue over why asylum seekers gathering at the Channel Tunnel do not seek asylum in France or the first countries by which they enter Europe. Sangatte is simply a base for people waiting to break the law and enter the UK illegally.'